Trachyteuthis Explained

Trachyteuthis is a genus of extinct octopodiform cephalopods, comprising six species: T. hastiformis, T. latipinnis, T. nusplingensis, T. teudopsiformis,^[1] T. covacevichi^[2] and T. chilensis.

Taxonomy

The taxonomic placement of Trachyteuthis is uncertain. Though often assigned to the order Vampyromorphida, the discovery of fossilised Trachyteuthis beaks in the Upper Jurassic limestone of Germany suggests a close phylogenetic relation to the Octopoda.^{[3] [4]} It is clear that it does at least belong in the Coleoidea.^[1] It is thought to be very closely related to Teudopsis.^[2]

Distribution

Fossils are scarce but have been reported from the Kimmeridge clay of the UK; the Solnhofen limestone of Germany, Jurassic deposits in Antarctica,^[5] and Oxfordian deposits in Chile.^[2]

History

First described in 1773 as the remnants of a fish, Trachyteuthis was considered comparable to a Sepia cuttlebone by Rüppell in 1829. A separate genus was erected for the material in 1846 by Meyer.^[1] English material discovered in 1855 was termed Coccoteuthis latipinnis; this was later synonymised with the identical Solnhofen deposits. A 2007 survey of museum collection established that there were ground for the erection of three species within the genus.^[1]

External links

• Fischerverlag Jena aus Adolf Naef "Die Fossilen Tintenfische" 1922
• The Taxonomicon: Order Vampyromorphida
• Mikko's Phylogeny Archive: Vampyromorpha

Notes and References

1. Fuchs, D. . Engeser, T. . Keupp, H. . 2007 . Gladius shape variation in coleoid cephalopod Trachyteuthis from the Upper Jurassic Nusplingen and Solnhofen Plattenkalks . . 52 . 3 . 575–589 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20120323030110/http://www.app.pan.pl/archive/published/app52/app52-575.pdf . 2012-03-23.
2. Fuchs, D. . Schultze, H.-P. . 2008 . Trachyteuthis covacevichin. Sp., a Late Jurassic Palaeopacific coleoid cephalopod . . 11 . 1 . 39 . 10.1002/mmng.200700012. free. 2008FossR..11...39F .
3. Klug, C. . Schweigert, G. . Dietl, G. . Fuchs, D. . 2005 . Coleoid beaks from the nusplingen Lithographic Limestone (Upper Kimmeridgian, SW Germany) . . 38 . 3 . 173 . 10.1080/00241160510013303. 2005Letha..38..173K .
4. Fischer, J. . Riou, B. . 2002 . Vampyronassa rhodanica nov. gen. nov sp., vampyromorphe (Cephalopoda, Coleoidea) du Callovien inférieur de la Voulte-sur-Rhône (Ardèche, France) . . 88 . 1 . 1 . 10.1016/S0753-3969(02)01037-6. 2002AnPal..88....1F .
5. Doyle, P. . 1991 . Teuthid cephalopods from the Upper Jurassic of Antarctica . . 34 . 1 . 169–178 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20120324051634/http://palaeontology.palass-pubs.org/pdf/Vol%2034/Pages%20169-178.pdf . 2012-03-24.